Remarkably, for the subgroup of patients with rectal cancer (n=362) only individuals with strong ME1 expression (+++) had locally advanced tumours (classified as pT4, Fig. 8b) or advanced lymph node metastasis (classified as pN2, Fig. 8c), suggesting a link between high-ME1 expression levels and advanced, aggressive tumours. The gene discussed is ME1; the disease is neoplasm.